Hypsie Gap Road murder victim was shot to death

Steven Richard Santillo had criminal record for drugs, robbery

"Multiple gunshot wounds" are the cause and "homicide" is the manner of the death of Steven Richard Santillo, the Blakeslee man found dead Thursday morning in the middle of a remote intersection in Chestnuthill Township, according to a county coroner's autopsy report released Friday.

"Multiple gunshot wounds" are the cause and "homicide" is the manner of the death of Steven Richard Santillo, the Blakeslee man found dead Thursday morning in the middle of a remote intersection in Chestnuthill Township, according to a county coroner's autopsy report released Friday.

A passing motorist at 5:30 a.m. Thursday found Santillo, 46, lying dead at the intersection of Hypsie Gap and Laurel roads in state gamelands in the northern-most corner of the township.

Santillo had a criminal history. Court records show he pleaded guilty to possession of drugs in 2003. He pleaded guilty to a robbery charge in 1991, faced drug charges in 1996 and, at that time, was ordered to undergo drug and alcohol treatment.

He served time in Lehigh County Prison.

Santillo's house on Center Drive in Tunkhannock Township, east of Indian Mountain Lake, sat empty Friday morning, with yellow police tape lying on the front steps. A pickup truck was parked in the driveway.

A neighbor, who declined to identify herself, said Santillo two years ago moved into the house, which was built in 2001. She said his parents and brother lived there with him until November, when they moved to Bethlehem.

The neighbor said she had seen police at Santillo's home on several occasions prior to his death.

Another neighbor, Christina Velasquez, called Santillo "a good guy," saying her family was friendly with Santillo and would take food to him because he struggled financially and had no food in his house. Velasquez said Santillo was helpful and cut people's lawns in the neighborhood.

"We were shocked when the police came by (Thursday) to talk to neighbors and told us he was dead," she said.

Her father, Jose Velasquez, who helped Santillo's parents move to Bethlehem, said Santillo at one point did construction-type work, but was unemployed and in debt at the time of his death.

Velasquez said Santillo sometimes got drunk and became obnoxious, but said he himself never saw Santillo causing harm or trouble to other neighbors.

Velasquez said the last time he saw Santillo was Wednesday, when Santillo helped him get his stranded car home from Route 115.

He said Santillo sometimes would come knocking on his door, looking for him for "stupid" reasons, especially when he had been drinking.

On Wednesday night, Santillo knocked on Velasquez's door, but Velasquez was tired and trying to sleep, so he had his son tell Santillo he would see him the next day.

That was the last time Velasquez saw or heard from Santillo before learning Thursday that he had been found dead.